When a young company is courting potential clients it's important to have a solid track record and some honors to attach to the resume, and a Westport software developer can do both after garnering a prestigious award at a recent Las Vegas trade show.

Westport-based Basic6, a startup development firm with annual revenue of about $120,000, was named "startup of the year" at the Interop Trade Show after a panel selected the company from 129 other businesses from across the country.

"It's a big deal for us. It validates what we've been working on for our software," said CEO Edward Samson.

Basic6 was established two years ago to develop software to help companies manage the exponential growth of information technology devices since the inception of virtual and cloud technology, according to Chris Tella, chief marketing office and executive vice president of sales.

The company, which is exhibiting through Thursday at the Cloud Expo at the Javits Center in New York City, has nine employees and uses the services of independent contractors to develop software to make it easier for information technology professionals to contend with the complexities of cloud computing.

"I've been bringing new technology to market for 30 years. Startups are more respected than ever," he said, adding that there are many in Basic6's market.

But in its two short years, Basic6 has developed a proven software that is usable for a variety of end-user systems, according to Steven Hill, a data center solutions senior analyst for Current Analysis, and a judge at Interop.

"A relative newcomer to the management market, Connecticut-based Basic6 offers an interesting, intuitive and inexpensive approach for managing resources in the data center, on the ground and in the cloud," Hill said in his report.

Its technology provides control over servers, cloud resources, user accounts and Windows, Linux and Macintosh-based end-user systems, he said.

"As we look into the future, it's going to get more complicated," Tella said, referring to the advent of the "Internet of Things."

The Internet of Things is a network of objects that contains embedded technology to communicate and sense, or interact, with their internal states or the external environment, according to Stamford-based Gartner.

The Internet of Things, which excludes personal computers, tablets and smartphones, will grow to 26 billion units installed in 2020 -- an almost 30-fold increase from 900 million in 2009, Gartner said in a recent report.

"The growth in IoT will far exceed that of other connected devices. By 2020, the number of smartphones tablets and PCs in use will reach about 7.3 billion units," Peter Middleton, research director at Gartner, said in a statement. "In contrast, the IoT will have expanded at a much faster rate, resulting in a population of about 26 billion units at that time."

"It's a very fast-moving space," Samson said. "The evidence is cloud computing. Most people don't understand what the cloud means long term. We're a consolidation tool and interoperability solution. We have a million passwords and interfaces to know and manage in this connective world."

Basic6 technology will become more valuable as micro-controllers are installed in cars, appliances and other devices, Samson said, citing Nest Labs' remote thermostat control technology as an example.

"We can get to them remotely and control them," he said.

Basic6 has displayed its nimbleness and creativity and can be a front-runner in adapting to change -- like the Internet of Things, said Liddy Karter, principal in Karter Capital Advisors in Old Lyme.

"The market for software development is highly competitive, but the Internet of Things provides a special opportunity because it is evolving rapidly," she said.

Basic6's success at Interop could propel the company as it pitches for more business, Karter said.

"This is a large, visible trade show. Basic6 will benefit from connecting with potential partners and customers from all over the world," she said. "This award is third party validation of the value of the software compared to its peers."